When filing a tax return, a taxpayer (i.e., an individual or business) generally has an opportunity to claim one or more tax deductions, also referred to as tax-deductible expenses. A tax deduction represents an expense incurred by the taxpayer, and may be subtracted from the taxpayer's reported gross income, thereby yielding a lower net income. A lower net income typically incurs lower taxes. Therefore, taxpayers are generally interested in identifying and claiming as many tax deductions as possible.
However, filing a tax return is a complex process, and it may be difficult for the taxpayer to identify all of the tax deductions available. For example, the number of miles traveled in a car or other transport device for business or charity related work is a tax deductible expense. Often times, taxpayers do not include the number of miles driven in a car for business or charity related travel as a deductible expense because it is an easily forgotten tax deductible expense. Therefore, each tax year, many individuals and businesses fail to take advantage of the full extent of tax deductions available to them.